Ironic
by Dlbn
Summary: Snippets of Seimei's life leading up to his death. It's ironic how things manifest, isn't it?


Dlbn: Happy birthday, Seimei! That is all

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING but the plot. All relevant characters, places, things, names, etc. belong in canon Loveless and thus are the property of Yun Kouga. I make _no_ money off writing in this category.

000

Was shutting up simply not an option? Aoyagi Seimei sighed as the girl next to him blathered on to him about some new dress she bought recently or something else stupid. He wasn't really listening to her, but she didn't seem to get the hint. God, this ten-year-old brother with amnesia was brighter than this. Not that it was an insult or anything. Ritsuka was always smart, even if having friends meant he didn't study often or do well in school. He was almost relieved when the final bell rang to release him from the prison he was stuck inside. He bid her his farewells and left so she couldn't strike up conversation with him. He hated being stuck in this place with these people. He knew it would be all over soon; what with the fact that he had to fake his death to escape an actual death. He hated that he had to leave Ritsuka behind, but it had to be done. If he were to ever make this world a perfect one for himself and his brother to live in, he had to find a way out of the imperfect world without ending his own life. He was much to vain and prideful to succumb to that. The curly haired neko was almost relieved when he exited the school and spotted a familiar face in the shadows of the sakura trees at the school's entrance. The boy had his hands clutching tightly to the strap from a messenger bag as he leaned against the tree with his legs stretched out and crossed in front of him. Long raven black hair cascaded around his lithe frame and Elvin face like a waterfall, and he made a move every five seconds or so to brush long bangs out of his eyes. Damn idiot needed a haircut, but refused to do it because having his hair long pissed off his father that he was at pure odds with. Seimei had the same amount of distain in him for his father that Nisei did for his, but this was just ridiculous. The fool could hardly see. At least pull it back. H frowned when he spotted someone with Nisei, taking to him a little. Nisei merely nodded in response. The curly haired boy with him was another Sacrifice named Mimuro; his best friend. If Mimuro didn't have his ears and Seimei didn't know any better, he'd say they were sleeping together. They didn't like one another, but as long as Mimuro didn't get in his way, he supposed it was alright.

Seimei sighed as he joined the two, putting on his best 'friendly' face. "I hope you weren't waiting long." He greeted.

"Forever and a day, Seimei." Nisei snorted.

Mimuro rolled his eyes. "I'm not staying." He explained. "I just thought I'd keep him company since we all know you like to drag your feet."

Seimei glared. "Then you can leave…?"

Mimuro muttered something under his breath before bidding Nisei goodbye and walking off.

"He's the only friend I have, you know." Nisei scolded. "Would it kill you to be nicer?"

"I could kill his mother and tell him to drop dead and he'd _still_ stick around you because he wants to be with you. Don't fool yourself."

Nisei flushed, huffing indignantly. His face was bright red.

"You don't know everything, Seimei."

"Of course I don't." Seimei chuckled. "Come; I don't have all day."

"Hm."

Nisei followed him without a word; quickly falling into pace with the younger teen at his side. It was always like this. They'd meet after school at Seimei's school, go about whatever business Seimei had planned, and go their separate ways without so much as a 'goodbye' between them. They'd only been paired as a Unit for a few months, but the elder was surprisingly subservient from the start. Odd, considering he lived to defy his parents' every wish and desire. Maybe that was why he wasn't going to live with either of his current divorcing parents. His brother and sister chose who'd they'd live with, but Nisei had admitted he'd decided to hoof it on his own. His father was going to pay for an apartment once he found one, but it was more out of desire to keep Nisei away then to take care of his own son. It wasn't like Seimei's absent father was any better. He was probably out messing around with other women or something when he wasn't home or was coming home at three am reeking of alcohol and perfume. It was a wonder his mother never noticed.

"So what are in for today, Seimei?" Nisei wondered, brushing hair from his eyes again.

"I was thinking of taking you to get a damn haircut."

Nisei glared and pushed his hair over the shoulder opposite Seimei. "It took me forever to grow this out. Piss off, Seimei."

"You can barely _see_ , _Akame_."

"Oh, last name calling." Nisei faked a shiver. "Did I upset you _that_ much, master?" He leaned his head on Seimei's, earning him a shove away.

"You know not to touch me…"

"But I like touching you."

"…You're a damn pervert."

"So are you for understanding the innuendo." Nisei tugged on a dark neko ear. "For someone who's still a _kitten_ , you sure have a dirty mind, Seimei."

Seimei batted his hand away. "Quit it." He stated, glaring at the spot above Nisei's head where his ears would have been had he still had them.

Nisei looked up and then smirked at him. "Curious, Seimei? Didn't your mother or father ever give you the talk?"

"I elected to ignore such nonsense." Seimei replied. "I know the process, Nisei, I'm no fool. I simply have no time nor desire for such activities."

"Well, someone's balls haven't dropped yet. Your voice confused me. I'd thought you'd already hit puberty."

"For your own sake; I'd stop talking."

000

That weekend, Seimei had convinced his mother and father to give him permission to stay 'at a friend's house' from Friday until Saturday. It killed him to be away from his Ritsuka, unable to protect him from their mother's wrath from such a distance, but it had to be done. Of course, he'd had Nisei pick him up from the house to make his lie that much more believable. He hadn't let him meet Ritsuka, since the younger boy was already in his room and asleep for the night by the time Nisei arrived at eleven that night. His parents seemed to buy the friend routine they put on and let him go. It wasn't like it would have mattered either way. If they had said no, he would have just informed Ritsu that he wouldn't be attending the meeting, and he could deal with it. But since they had agreed, he was currently on a six-hour journey to Gora for a meeting he didn't want to go to with someone he didn't really want to be with at the moment. It wasn't that he hated Nisei or was annoyed by him; he just would have rather be at home with Ritsuka. He wondered how Nisei had managed to convince his overly strict parents go let him for an overnight visit with a friend, but considering that they were too concerned with their divorce and probably didn't want him around anyway, he wasn't too surprised. The earless raven was working on his laptop but hadn't disclosed what it was. Seimei didn't really care, as he had a book to entertain him on the journey. He'd read it at least three times already, but it was his favorite. Nisei barely stopped typing to take a sip of the soda he'd made Seimei wait for him while he bought it in the train station terminal. Seimei was tempted to leave him behind, but even he knew that going on a trip to Gora alone would leave him unprotected. He could handle himself, but it was nice to have a Fighter around. He could have brought Agatsuma instead, but he'd kept him busy by ordering him to catch up on back homework for the weekend so he could spend time alone with Ritsuka for a couple days. The blonde Fighter had happily obliged. He wasn't Seimei's real Fighter like Nisei was, but he'd requested the blank's assistance from Ritsu, and the man foolishly gave him away. He'd been broken in long before Seimei got a hold of him. It was nice having two compliant Fighters, but he'd be lying if he said he didn't enjoy it when Nisei told him to piss off or challenged his authority. True power was great, but he could briefly give up some of that power once and a while if it meant a challenge and a break from the norm.

Nisei groaned in frustration and sat back in his seat, rubbing at his temples.

"Something troubling you?" Seimei wondered, looking at him over the top of his book.

"This passcode." Nisei stated.

"The Wi-Fi?"

"A private network I'm looking for a backdoor into for a client."

"Client?"

"How do you think I pay for the things I need? My parents won't do shit for me outside of paying for that apartment."

"How do you pay, then?"

Seimei briefly wondered if his ears had been a casualty for how he got money.

"I hack." Nisei smirked before going back to his computer like he'd gotten an idea. "Aha! I got in. thanks for the distraction."

His fingers furiously flew over the keyboard, making Seimei wonder if he actually saw what he was typing. The younger shut his book and moved to sit at Nisei's side. The other didn't blink, but he did raise an eyebrow.

"May I help you?"

"Can you even see what you're typing?"

"I know what I'm doing. I don't need to look." Nisei demonstrated by typing 'fuck off' without looking at the keyboard.

Seimei huffed, face reddening. "Zip it."

"Make me."

Seimei glared. Nisei returned the glare for a few moments before giving in with a sigh and going back to what he was doing.

"So what are you hacking?"

"Just a private network. Guy wants proof of his wife cheating on him."

"So you're like a private investigator of sorts…?"

Nisei laughed dryly. "No, nowhere near that. A private investigator has to act within the confines of the law, whereas a hacked like me does not." He stated. "I'm what you'd call a black hat."

"And that is…?"

"Someone who participates in illegal activities by hacking. I'm breaking several dozen privacy laws at the moment."

"is it worth the potential of getting caught?"

"I've perfected my art. I won't get caught." He chuckled. "The last time I got caught was in sixth grade when I broke in to change my grade for my math class from a C to a B."

"If you're going to change your grade, at least give yourself an A." Seimei scolded.

"I figured if it was a subtle change, no one would really notice. I alerted a few firewalls and other similar things and they caught me within the week. I got my ass handed to me by my father for that one." Nisei chuckled. "I've practiced hacking into my family's desktop and Mimuro's laptop to perfect my strategy. I'm the best there is now."

"So you say."

"So I know." Nisei nodded. "I take the work that other people can't or won't. I'm not afraid to get down and dirty. If I need an escape, I leave myself one."

"I see…"

Nisei nodded and continued his work, not paying any attention to the Sacrifice at his side. For someone who acted like a total fool and barely had any of the sense required to function, he was pretty bright. If only he'd put a bit more effort into his grades, he probably never would have gotten caught.

000

Ah, Septimal Moon meetings were always interesting. If one replaced the meaning of the word 'interesting' with the definition for the phrase 'waste of time'. Seimei could barely stay awake as the meeting went on. Nagisa argued with Ritsu over every little thing, Nana was more distracted by her laptop than Nisei was, Mikado didn't seem to care what was going on around her as she filed her nails, Chouma was giggling at something on her cell phone, and Kunugi never bothered to show up. Nisei stood outside with Mikado's fighter Tokino, but the others didn't have Fighters to speak of. Nagisa's had died in a car accident when they were children, Ritsu's Fighter was Soubi's mother who had died in a car accident with his father, Chouma never talked about hers, Kunugi's had been in a coma since they were teenagers, and Nana's had died when they had attempted to take over Septimal Moon. Obviously, they'd done so, but not without casualties. His father's Fighter and a few other members of their group had perished as well.

The clock slowly ticked time away as the meeting went nowhere. Seimei wasn't even certain why Ritsu had called the meeting, and he was pretty certain even Ritsu no longer remembered. They were almost as annoying as his classmates were. Chouma was at least tolerable, as was Mikado. He'd befriended the two ladies, but he was closer to Chouma. Mikado was fourteen and Chouma was twenty-one, making their age gaps rather large. He more tolerated Mikado than he actually had a friendship with her. Her views on the world were childish. 'Everything has a reason'. How foolish. Chouma was on an intellectual level closer to his own. They'd had lengthy discussions about many topics; from Septimal Moon to movies and TV shows Seimei never bothered to watch, but knew enough about.

"Bored, Seimei?" Mikado asked softly from his side.

It wasn't in her nature to be loud, but she was certainly rather blunt.

"You could tell?" He sighed.

"When is Sei-san _not_ bored?" Chouma giggled, looking up from her phone for the first time since the meeting had started forty-five minutes ago.

He rolled his eyes. "When's the last time we got anything done during one of these so-called meetings?"

"When's the last time Kunugi attended?" Chouma tapped a finger with a pink painted nail on her chin.

"I cannot recall." Mikado shook her head.

"It's been that long?" Seimei wondered. "I wonder what he has going on that Ritsu allows him to skip out while we have to stay here in this nonsense." He rolled his eyes as Nagisa threw a pen at Ritsu, who ducked.

"He's with his Fighter." Chouma stated. "I overhear Ritsu on the phone with him."

"What's the point? He's not going to wake up any time soon. They should just pull the plug."

"Seimei, that's a terrible thing to say." Mikado scolded, her ears hiding in her hair.

"He's not wrong." Chouma chuckled. "It's been what, twenty years?"

"Soubi is nineteen years old. It's been longer than that."

"He is?" Chouma cocked an eyebrow. "I thought he was closer to your age; not mine."

Seimei shook his head. "He was born in '88."

"Nineteen indeed, then." Mikado nodded. "So it's been at least twenty years."

"Twenty-five to be exact. A quarter of a century." Nana was looking at the trio out of the corner of her left eye. "You'd do well to discuss matters in hushed tones, or in other company. We're not the people that need to hear this."

Of course not. If it hadn't been for Ritsu and Soubi's mother, none of them would have ever met. Mirai wouldn't be in a coma, Nana's Fighter would still be alive, as would his father's Fighter…when it all came back to it, the whole thing was Ritsu and Iyani's fault. The Headmaster wouldn't want to be reminded of his gravest mistake. Sure, they'd all known the risks involved in joining together to take down Septimal Moon, but it had been Ritsu and Iyani's idea from the start. The others were just foolish enough to join in.

"Hai, Nana. Gomen." Seimei bowed his head in a mock apology.

Mikado blushed and looked way, but Chouma gave the blue haired computer expert a mocking grin. Nana just rolled her eyes and went back to work on the computer. Chouma pouted at the lack of a response, folding her arms over her chest. Seimei rolled his eyes. Both ladies were so childish it was pathetic. At least Chouma made up for it with her wit and intelligence. Mikado was just Mikado. A thump in the hall finally ceased the fighting between Ritsu and Nagisa. With a sigh, Seimei and Mikado both stood to go see what the commotion was. Considering it was just their Fighters in the hall, it wasn't much of a wonder who had caused the noise. Seimei held the door open for Mikado like a gentleman, but let it slam shut in Ritsu's face as he and the others followed. He didn't think much of the Headmaster. Nisei was on his backside with his hands out behind him, glaring at Tokino who sat in a similar position across from him. It looked like one had fallen and taken the other one with him.

"What's going on?" Mikado wondered, ears perking.

Both Fighters began shouting at once.

"Silence." Seimei ordered Nisei with the most venomous look he could muster. "Fujiwara-san, please continue." Seimei nodded at the elder Fighter.

"He started it." Was all Tokino said.

Nisei huffed. "I did not."

"I don't believe that."

Nisei glared. "You wouldn't even trust your own Fighter's word?"

"I wouldn't trust if you'd given me footage of the incident."

"…That hurts, Seimei."

"Whatever happened, please refrain from fighting in the hallway." Mikado ordered her Fighter softly.

He bowed his head and apologized.

"Not much of a fight." Nisei complained.

"That's enough out of you." Seimei glared. "If you can't behave, you stay home with your parents next time, understood?"

Nisei just glared.

"Alright, I think that signals the end of the meeting for today." Ritsu pinched the bridge of his nose between two fingers.

"It's not like anything was getting accomplished anyway." Chouma said, snapping a photo on her phone of the look on Nisei's face as he and Seimei communicated using their bond so the others couldn't hear.

"Enough." Nana scolded her, not looking up from the laptop she'd brought out of the room with her and still typed on with her right hand.

"Until next time." Nagisa checked her watch. "Just as well. I have my baby Zeroes to attend to."

The senior members went their separate ways. Mikado stayed behind to help up her Fighter. Seimei made no move to do the same as Nisei sighed and maneuvered himself to his feet. Chouma just scrolled through her phone.

"You two have such different Sacrificial styles." She stated.

"Is that even a correct phrase?" Mikado wondered.

Chouma shrugged one shoulder. "How should I know?" She asked. "I'm not the Fighter; I don't have to be a word expert."

"It's correct." Tokino offered, tossing a glare at Nisei over Mikado's head.

The darker Fighter stuck out his tongue, earning a swat upside the head from Seimei for being childish.

"Thought so." Chouma nodded. "See you kiddos later. I could use a lollipop and a nap."

"Those two don't exactly go together, Chouma." Mikado informed.

She shrugged. "What do I care? I'm hungry and tired."

"Lollipops aren't food." Seimei scolded her. "Eat a little healthier, would you? You're skin and bones."

"Aw, is little Sei-san worried about me?" She cooed, ruffling his hair. "How adorable."

He swatted her away. "Back off, woman."

She laughed, turning on her heel and stalking off. Despite the relatively chilly air of the building brought on by the air conditioning, she was dressed warmly in shorts and a tank top with heels. She didn't have pain receptors, so she couldn't feel cold or heat either. Nagisa's two sets of Zero had the same condition, but Seimei wondered if that was on purpose from watching Chouma and her aunt all those years. Chouma's mother and older twin brother didn't have the lack of pain receptors that she did, but it ran in the family since her aunt had it. Nagisa had been fascinated with it since the day they met.

"What did she mean about 'different sacrificial styles?" Mikado wondered.

"Seimei's a dick to me and you treat that like it's god." Nisei nodded at Tokino, digging at his fingernails.

"Listen, you…" Tokino growled in warning.

"Tokino, that's enough, please. Cease this foolishness." She straightened out her pigtails. "Come, let's retire to our room. I've grown rather weary from sitting for four years of Nagisa and Ritsu fighting."

"Only four hours this time?" Nisei wondered. "I believe their record is seven."

Mikado giggled as she took Tokino's outstretched hand and followed him down the hall. The blonde glared at Nisei over his shoulder and the younger stuck his tongue out at him again and wiggled his fingers in greeting. Tokino rolled his eyes and turned around. When they rounded the corner, Seimei took the opportunity to slap Nisei upside the head and pull him close by the collar. The fire burning in the Sacrifice's eyes made Nisei squirm a little to try to get away from him.

"What in the _hell_ was that all about? Grow up, Akame." Seimei scolded. "I expect better from you."

"Hai, Gomennasai." Nisei pulled at Seimei's hand.

"Well? What were you two arguing about?"

"I was just doing my hacking." Nisei pointed a thumb at his laptop sitting on the floor a few feet from where he'd been sitting. "Minding my own business until we got to talking. Things got heated when I picked on him for having such a young child for a Sacrifice. I guess he thinks rather highly of her or something, because he snapped at me about 'better a child like Mikado than a bully like Seimei'. I defended you, and, well, we got into it."

"Physically?" Seimei made a tsk sound. "You're a Fighter. Use your damn words."

"Hey, he shoved me first. I just kicked his legs out from under him."

"So that's what that noise was." Seimei sighed and let go of Nisei's now wrinkled turtleneck. "You're both fools."

"Gee, I wasn't aware that defending you was foolish. "I'll be sure not to do it again."

Seimei rolled his eyes. "Shut up." He ordered. "I'm tired as well."

"Alright, fine." Nisei grabbed his laptop and his bag and smiled at Seimei. "Lead the way, master."

Seimei sighed. How did he ever get stuck with such a twit as his Fighter?

000

"Soubi?" Seimei asked his second Fighter a few days later.

"Hai, Seimei?" The blonde looked up from the canvas he was painting for his art class. "What is it?"

"Let me ask you something."

"Hai?"

"No, never mind. It's foolish."

"Nothing is foolish if it comes from you, Seimei."

Seimei rolled his eyes. "You and I both know this peace cannot last, correct?"

Soubi's smile faltered. "Whatever do you mean, Seimei?"

"The lack of fighting lately, the lack of…other related activities…" The blush on the artist's face showed that he understood what Seimei was hinting towards. "It can't last forever."

"I suppose not." Soubi answered. "The calm before the storm, as they say."

Seimei nodded. "Should something happen to me…what would you do?"

"Happen to you?" Soubi cocked his head. "What do you mean?"

Had he still been a child with ears, it would have been cute. But as an earless adult, it was irritating.

"Say Septimal Moon finally gets wind of what we've done."

"Hai?"

"You know Mikado will have no choice but to carry out an execution order, do you not?"

"I wouldn't let her succeed." Soubi frowned.

"How do we prevent that scenario from occurring?"

"I'm not quite sure I follow…?"

"In lieu of stopping my work entirely…how do we keep it from those fools?"

"You've said it yourself, Seimei. They're a bunch of fools. They'll never be able to figure it out."

"Join me in a discussion here, Soubi. What if there was a chance they _were_ able to find out, hm? What would you do?"

"Whatever Seimei wants me to do."

"That's not an answer, and you know it." Seimei growled.

"I'm not supposed to think for myself…my Sacrifice's order is absolute and must be followed…therefore I have to do whatever Seimei tells me to do."

"Ignore the bullshit Ritsu pounded into your head for five seconds. Quite literally, if I recall correctly."

He saw Soubi visibly shudder at the mere hint to his previous sexual relationship with the Sensei who had raised him.

"Hai, Seimei."

"Suppose you discovered they found out, or were close to it. you had no way of communicating with me quickly enough to warn me. What do you do?"

"I'd…I suppose I'd take them down myself. I can handle a child such as Gomon."

There was that bloodlust that could only come from one of Beloved. Perhaps Soubi was one of them after all.

Seimei smirked. "That's what I like to hear."

000

Lounging around Nisei's apartment because they both had the day off from classes and Ritsuka did not, Seimei sighed as he read through his favorite book a fifth time. Or maybe it was the sixth? The raven was annoyingly laughing away as he played a game online with Mimuro. He wasn't sure what it was, but he didn't really care. He liked solo games better. He knew Nisei did, as well, but he was probably just playing to keep the blonde happy. The thought made Seimei's stomach churn. How could _his_ Fighter find it important to keep another Sacrifice happy? Best friends or not, it was disgusting. The chill of jealousy was creeping up the neko's spine, and he didn't like it. he caught a glimpse from the corner of his eye of Nisei looking at him as if he'd sensed it in their bond, but he feigned ignorance.

"I'll be on later, Sempai." Nisei told his friend through his headset. "Someone's irritated."

They spoke quickly so Seimei couldn't pick up on whatever language they were using before Nisei finally tossed his headphones onto the couch and leaned back as he ran long, nimble fingers through his hair.

"Am I bothering you by having fun, Seimei? Or is because it's Mimuro that you're getting irritated?"

"I'm not irritated." Seimei argued, ears twitching in annoyance to call him out for being a liar.

"So you say." Nisei practically sang at him.

Seimei resisted the urge to toss the book at his partner's head. That wasn't a good use for a book, and it would only make him yell at Seimei like he had a right to. Only one that had any right to yell in this relationship as him.

"Say, Nisei, how about a hypothetical."

"Hai?" Nisei cocked his head to the side in a mild curiosity.

"Say Gomon were to somehow come close to discovering our…activities."

"That would never happen." Nisei huffed.

"Hence the word _hypothetical_." Seimei rolled his eyes.

"Hai, hai. Please continue."

"What would you do to prevent that?"

"I'd kill the brat." Nisei laughed. "What a stupid game, Seimei. Can I go back to playing my real game now?"

"Suppose you couldn't _kill_ her."

"Then I'd teach her a lesson she'd never forget."

A few weeks later, when Seimei gave him an order to attack the young teen, the Fighter would learn that giving Seimei ideas probably wasn't the best thing to do.

000

He steered clear of Seven Voices Academy and any talks that Minami or the other members attempted to have with him. Kunugi was the only one who didn't try to contact him, but that wasn't a surprise. Gomon had even tried a few times to get his attention and force an answer out of him. But telling her he didn't know why he'd made Nisei attack her was just too much fun. The principle she founded her entire being on was being questioned and challenged; not everything had a reason. Seimei sat in his room with Ritsuka, the younger neko staring at him in a strange mix of curiosity and confusion. He'd finally worked up the nerve to tell the younger Aoyagi his true name. of course, his now amnesia clouded mind didn't understand what it would have had this been a year or two ago. He simply shrugged when he was asked what that meant.

"That's just my name." He smiled at his brother.

"No, your name is Seimei, Seimei." Ritsuka argued with a proud grin as his brother rolled his eyes at him.

"I know that, silly." Seimei tapped his nose. "Just remember the name Beloved, okay? Can you do that for me?"

"How could I forget that name? It's so pretty!" Ritsuka smiled, making Seimei blush.

"Why, thank you. Just promise me that that name is the one thing you will never forget? Above all else, remember my name."

"Okay, Seimei. But why?" His tail stopped swishing.

"Because its important."

"Everything about you is important, Seimei."

"Why, Ritsuka, I'm flattered." He smiled a little. "But one day people will come to you asking for me by that name. I want you to remember it and know that they are people you can trust, alright?"

"Okay, Seimei. But why would people come looking for you?"

"No reason in particular. Just gaming friends I haven't spoken to in a while. They only know me by that name."

"Oh, it's your gaming name! I got it. You're funny, Seimei." Ritsuka grinned before peering back down at his book to continue reading.

"Yes…funny…"

000

He felt horrible, standing there just at the outskirts of the gravesite; watching his brother bawl his eyes out while their mother choked on her sobs and their useless father remained as stoic as ever. What a pathetic excuse for a family. What a pathetic excuse for a funeral. Half the people there were unrecognizable to him. He did spot the one or two annoying girls in his classes that wouldn't leave him alone, but only because he wanted to avoid them at all costs. The rest were nameless and faceless classmates, family he didn't care to remember and didn't see often enough to need to remember, and the occasional unit or part of a unit that he'd met once or twice before and passed his tests. Agatsuma was waiting in the shadows, watching at a distance like Seimei was. The Sacrifice of Faceless was in the crowd somewhere, her face undiscernible, sending him text that were read silently by himself as he leaned on a tree in the distance. Falling leaves tinted from yellow to orange and everywhere in between fell around him and lay at his feet. He chuckled a little as he read her latest text.

 _Your cousin is telling some story I can tell is total bullshit. You're such a douche! Fuck this 'great guy' bullshit they've been sprouting all day. Seriously, Seimei, how are you related to these poor saps?_

"You're going to get caught if you keep laughing like that." Nisei informed, brushing leaves from his hair.

"I'm quiet enough, and my mother's sobs are loud enough to rouse the dead, let alone hide my voice." Seimei replied. "I'm fine."

"I wouldn't argue." Nisei looked him over.

Seimei glared, ears flattening. "Pervert."

Nisei shrugged, not really caring what he thought. "Can we go home now? Or are you still enjoying watching your family be tortured?"

Seimei rolled his eyes. "The only family I have is Ritsuka." He slipped his phone into his pocket and pushed off the tree. "Come; let's head back to your place before anyone sees us coming or going and says something."

"Hai." Nisei nodded. "Hey, Seimei? How about bento tonight? I'm in the mood for it, and my brother gave me some when I ran into him the other day outside school."

 _Ran into_ was an understatement. The elder Akame had been waiting in the lobby of Nisei's school with the food in hand, and had grabbed him as he was trying to rush out to meet Seimei. The two brothers didn't get along well, considering his brother had tried to force Akame to bend to their parents' wishes to stop the fighting between him and them. Of course, Nisei had wanted no part of the discussion, but he'd taken the food anyway. Seimei wasn't sure if Hideki had spotted them together, but he wasn't too worried about that now.

"Yeah, whatever." Seimei sighed, taking one last look at the scene in front of him before shoving his hands in his pockets and walking away.

Nisei faithfully trotted behind him, hands in his coat pockets and face upturned to the sky. Without the fools of Septimal Moon, the untrained brats of the academy, his useless parents, annoying classmates, and pathetic family members in his life, things would get a lot more peaceful. He was saddened by the fact that Ritsuka had to be left behind, but he'd come back for him when the time was right. Agatsuma, too. For now, it was just himself and Nisei: Sacrifice and true Fighter, Master and Servant. He had allies on his side that were against Septimal Moon, and the fact that the very group he was once a part of had no idea he was still alive was like bliss. No more inane meetings, no more fighting between Nagisa and Ritsu, no more long, late travels to Gora after lying to his mother about where he'd be for the night. No nothing stood in the way of his ultimate goal; overtaking Septimal Moon like Ritsu had done himself at Seimei's age. Ironic how things came full circle like that, wasn't it?


End file.
